State library getting federal money for broadband

JUNEAU - The Alaska State Library is receiving $5.4 million to create a broadband network aimed at linking Alaska communities through Internet access at 104 public libraries statewide.

The U.S. Commerce Department funding will cover most of the project's cost. The rest is coming from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rasmuson Foundation.

The state department of education, of which the library is a part, says the project's goal is to allow for libraries to act as information exchange points and to allow opportunities for online job and education training and for the delivery of social services.